Dream flowers in Craft Stamper Magazine

And just when I'm starting to catch up with uploading my art to this blog I'm caught out by the arrival of the latest issue (October 2011) of the Craft Stamper magazine in which my article and project called Dream Flowers is published (page 74). The magazine is very strict about what you can publish on your blog about the projects you write for them so if you want to see it in full there is only one option: buy the magazine. This does not just give you my article but I'm pleased to say this entire issue is a fabric special and you will also get a wonderful star stamp (see the picture below) although sadly not if you live outside the U.K.

I'm able to show you one item which is not the main project but an extra which you can only find online at the Craft Stamper whereas two other projects are in the magazine itself together with full instructions of how to make them! This is the fabric postcard shown at the top. As always I love the way the article has been laid out and photographed. This magazine always does such a good job with the styling etc.

I know it's pure coincidence or maybe another example of wonderful synchronicity but I love the fact that the stamp this month is a star, which is a symbol beloved of my wonderful friend, Lenna Andrews. She even used it for her wedding. How great is that??!

Witch Hazel in Craft Stamper

Just a quick blog tonight as I've spend the past 2 days on 2 gorgeous workshops with the American beader Laura McCabe, starting to make the Crystal Burst Bracelet yesterday and the Cherry Blossom one today. There is still a long way to go on both but they are so gorgeous that I just know I will work away on them so that in due course I can wear them! These workshops were organized by Jo from the Bead Shop in Haddington and I'm already looking forward to future ones!

Yesterday my latest issue of the Craft Stamper Magazine arrived (October 2008 issue) and they published my Halloween card Witch Hazel. You can read all about how I made the card here. The image as well as the stamp are from Alphastamps.

A winner in Craft Stamper

My latest issue of the British Craft Stamper magazine arrived today and I was really pleased to see they had published my ATC On your bike (see an earlier blog post here) , as part of their regular ATC challenge, and.......... it was actually the winner this month for which I will received a lovely surprise package.

It really made my day and I love the way they have staged it (see the above picture!) The fabric image I used on the ATC is from Alphastamps Paris Showgirls #1 collage sheet! It really made my day!!

Witch Hazel ATC

The new theme for the Craft Stamper magizine ATC challenge is Fireworks and Halloween, no doubt because by the time they will be published it will be in the issues for October (Halloween) and November (Guy Fawkes day here in the U.K. with bonfires and fireworks to celebrate they did not blow up our Houses of Parliament, although I can't quite see what's good about that??? Given the state of our politics at the moment it would not have been a great loss, in my opinion!).

It does seem a strange juxtaposition of elements but I have managed to sort of combine them.

The background is a paper/fabric collage made in the usual way as described before on this blog. It features bits of spooky paper napkins which you can see in the background with a detail of cemetary gates. It also has the word October just visible, from an ancient Books of Days. To this I sewed the paper image from Alphastamps Witch Hazel collage sheet and well as the words Witch Hazel which are actually the titel words from the same sheet. Both the image and the words were rubbed with purple and blue metallic Rub-On, using my finger.

I stamped the Belladonna Drops stamp (from Alphastamps Poison Clear Stamp set) onto a piece of acetate, using blue Staz-On Ink and cut it to size. This was also stitched on along the lines, using purple sewing thread.

To make it look like the witch is making her way through fireworks, I added olive-green Swarowski crystals around her (very hard to see on the scan!) using a hot-tip applicator. It realy sparkles in real life. These could also be interpreted as the Belladonna drops!

It will be on its way to the magazine soon!

ATC published in Craft Stamper Magazine

My latest issue of the Craft Stamper magazine arrived today and I sat in the sunshine looking through its pages when I discovered my ATC The Note of a Bird had been published as part of the ATC Challenge.

You can read about how it was made on an earlier blog here! Stamp and transparency used are from Alphastamps.

To add to my Feel Good mood I also received the returns of the Inchies Swap from Artchix Studio and discovered they have featured one of my inchies on their new set of Collage Sheets, no. CC908A Chixies Flying Inchies. It took me ages to finally recognize my own work!

On your bike ATC

I also managed to make an ATC for the Modes of Transport theme set by the Craft Stamper magazine this month. I finally caved in and took out a subscription as I seemed to drive 50 miles each month just to get my copy, a bit extreme and a pure waste of petrol. Not to mention all the other items I managed to buy while in the Borders Bookshop.

They are the only magazine in the U.K. running an ATC swap with a new theme every two months but of course this ATC needs to include stamping in some shape or other.

The background is one of my fabric/paper collages with a French taste to it. I used a lot of napkins in my collage which had cafes, bars and coffeeshops on them with French names. You can see one faintly in the background. There is also a fragment of an antique map of Paris on show. To this I added a fabric images from Alphastamps Paris showgirls #1 sheet (a tiny bit risque) . I stamped the bike image on a transparency using black Staz-On ink. No idea where this stamp came from. It's a clear one from a sheet dedicated to travel. This was stitched on, partly covering the showgirl to spare her blushes. The text was actually the first thing I thought of when I found out the Modes of Transport theme. It was famously uttered by one of our politicians (Norman Tebbit) to tell people to get on with finding jobs.

Love Hurts published in Craft Stamper magazine

I went to Peebles today for the yearly second hand book sale. This is an event I try not to miss although there have been years when I was teaching on the Saturday. Fortunately it lasts till Sunday and although I am tempted to go back the next day (I did last year!) I think I have indulged enough today. I also overlooked the fact that the books needed to be transported (by me!!) to the carpark. I did get a lovely selection of books published in the 19th Century which will turn up in my collages in the future!

On the way in, I stopped off at a newsagent and found the latest issue of the Craft Stamper magazine was out and even better, they had published a picture of my Love Hurts ATC. This is the only British magazine which actually runs an ATC swap where they set the theme every 2 months, you send in the ATC (which needless to say has to figure stamping in some form or other!) and a stamped addressed envelope and you receive someone else's ATC in that envelope and of course the chance that they will publish your ATC in the magazine. Here it is in the magazine!

All stamps and images are from Alphastamps. You can read about how I made it on an earlier post here!

The Note of a Bird ATC

Made for a swap at the Craft Stamper Magazine with the theme of Flora and Fauna. I'm almost out of time for this one but hopefully I will manage to get this to them before the end of the month. I used a left over piece from the fabric/paper collage I made last year for my August Journal Quilt. It features a vintage image of a landscape with a sun shining above it. The rays were emphasized with gold stitching and over the landscape I stamped the image of a raven (from Alphastamps).

At the bottom I added a transparency (from Alphastamps Parrots sheet) of a bird carrying a rose in its beak, thus covering both flora and fauna in one fell swoop! The quotation: The Note of a Bird was added and the whole piece was mounted onto watercolour paper and stitched around the edges with zigzag stitch using gold thread.

After Christmas, it's time for Hearts

or rather time to think of Valentine Day already. Hearts swaps galore and I have to say this is a festivity much more to my taste than Christmas.

Love I can do, romance I love and my heart is definitely in the right place!

So I've made a large hearts related fabric/paper collage in readiness for the big day and all the upcoming swaps. I used part of it to make this ATC which is called: Love Hurts, as you can just about read at the top, although it's partially obscured by the transparency. The fabric/paper collage also has sparkle (from Art Glitter0 which is hard to see on the scan.

I layered my collage with Timtex and watercolour paper for the back, which were all connected by zigzag stitching. At the bottom is a fabric image from the Modern Romance Tallulah sheet by Alphastamps and I overstamped this with the Flying Heart stamps, also by Alphastamps.

I added a transparency (from Alphastamps Emotions sheet) over the entire ATC. She looks very thoughtful in keeping with the Love Hurts sentiment and maybe thinking back to a past romance which did not end well.

I added a self-sticking sparkly heart in the top left corner.

My ATC in Craft Stamper Magazine

I discovered today that my ATC Passport to Adventure has been published in the British magazine Craft Stamper, June Issue 2007. This magazine organizes ATC swaps with a different theme every 2 months. The theme for this one was ATCs for men and this is my contribution. Needless to say the ATCs have to have stamping as this is what the magazine is all about. The man stamp I used is from Hero Arts and the quotation is also from a stamp. I've used quite a bit of machine stitching and a transparency from the Eiffel Tower. It was such a surprise to buy the magazine today and discovered it at the top of the article.

The weather has been gorgeous and I've been busily quilting away on my large quilt as well as visiting a Continental Market in Peebles today where between us John and I managed to spend a small fortune. I indulged in a bouquet of wooden roses (from Holland!) and 2 lovely soaps from France, one of rose + honey and the other mimosa smell. John bought cheeses, ham, sausages and French bread and I indulged in a made on the spot French crepe with apple and Calvedos! Gorgeous. Just as well it's not a regular event, as we would grow fat very quickly!!

We've also managed to acquire 3 new chickens, provisionally christened The Three Graces as they are impossible to tell apart at the moment. Tomorrow we will let them mingle with Hector, the cockerel and Cagney, the one remaining black chicken (now 6 years old). Hopefully they will all like each other as chickens can be very vicious with each other.